With the growing political and environmental problems associated with the use of conventional fossil fuels, there has been an increased interest in alternate sources of energy which are both economical and do not have a serious environmental impact. Water power has long been recognized as a major source of power, but the damming and impounding of water of our major rivers has already been exploited to a substantial degree. Also the impounding of water itself has an impact on the surrounding countryside and interferes with navigation on the rivers.
The ebb flow of tides has been suggested as another source of energy but to utilize the tides also requires the impounding of water in order to obtain a continuous source of power from the cyclic action of the tides.
One source of energy which has not been utilized is the major currents which are found in the ocean, such as the Japanese current in the Pacific and the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic. The continuous flow of large volumes of water which are present in these currents represents a fast source of continuous energy which to date remains untapped.